Yes! Christmas is over baby, and the New Year euphoria is also leaving us gradually but the impression of the celebratory season still lingers. For me, I remember visiting the village after being MIA for a while and being greeted by my favorite recipes like my fave, Afia Efere (White Soup).
You know, I want to hate the city for making us negligent of our culture. For instance, I cannot share my crave for Pounded Yam and Afia Efere with my neighbor, because she will go, “what is white soup?”
I remember my dad giving me the medal (not literally) for passing the ‘yam pounding classes’ and sending me forth from the ‘white soup school’. (Yes! As a proper Calabar geh that I am). So, Pounded Yam and White Soup is a recipe I have grown up knowing, and being back at home for the holidays refreshed this candid memory.
Also, this is not just about my long-lost love – Afia Efere, it this is about a wonderful recipe that should cut across globally. White Soup a.k.a Afia Efere takes its name from the colour of the soup. It is made using pounded yam to thicken it, hence the name, which connotes that unlike other traditional soups it doesn’t use palm oil for colouration. As the name implies, the soup is usually served with Pounded Yam.
How to Cook Afia Efere (White Soup)
Soup Ingredients
- Meat (Goat Meat does it the most. White soup is also often called after goat meat (ebot) as Afia Efere Ebot)
- Uyayak pod (Adrian Fruit)
- Adusa a.k.a Ukazi Leaf
- Pepper
- Dry grounded crayfish
- Dry fish
- Boiled yam pieces mashed with a mortar or Pounded Yam Flour made into paste
- Salt
How to:
- Season and cook meat till it is tender.
- Break the Uyayak pod and grind into fine powder, pour in some water and mix.
- Use the meat stock as a base for the soup, you may add water to achieve the desired volume.
- Add Dry Fish, Cray Fish, Pepper, and season to taste
- Add the Uyayak pod mixture
- Add your mashed yam or flour paste to thicken the soup
- Boil the soup without covering until it is thickened enough
- Add the Adusa Leaf for a spicy flavor
- Voila! Your soup is ready to serve with pounded yam
To make pounded yam:
- Boil a full tuber of yam until completely soft.
- Then pound the boiled yam in a mortar until evenly pounded and well mashed.
- Roll the pounded yam into serving sizes.
- Serve with Afia Efere and experience the euphoria!
Bon appetite!
Totally try out Pounded Yam and Afia Efere (White Soup) recipe and don’t forget to share with me how it went.
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